Janus Clique
Operating from the hidden reaches of the Eressa Sector, the Janus Clique are an Alpha Legion cell but with one goal: insurrection. Made up of only ten Astartes, the Clique works against the Imperial presence in the sector via the infiltration, blackmail and extortion of its governance and military leadership. Few are aware of the existence of the Janus Clique, and fewer still are even aware of their true purpose in the Sector. History Before the Imperium (Pre-339.M41) Unlike the other Traitor Legions at the end of the Horus Heresy, the Alpha Legion did not retreat into the Eye of Terror but instead broke up into a mass of cells that spread themselves across Imperial and Heretic controlled space and beyond. Amongst these cells was the Janus Clique, and it sought to find pockets of humankind cut off from the Imperium and prepare them for the Long War against the Imperium. What sparse Ordo Hereticus records that exist regarding the Clique cite their presence in other a dozen sectors before any sign of activity in the Eressa sector. While the Imperium only established a presence in the Eressa Sector in 339.M41, it is believed by several Inquisitors that the Janus Clique was operating within the sector for several decades beforehand amongst the already existing human settlements. They recruited locals within the civil service and military – via bribery or blackmail – and managed to create a vast network of human operatives. Many of these men and women knew little about who was giving them commands or what they were part of – the higher they were in command chains the less they would be permitted to know. With these operatives, the Janus Clique were sowed chaos throughout the sector; Industrial accidents, ‘natural’ disasters and military set backs were set up and executed by the Clique on a regular basis. But the goal of the Janus Clique was never to wipe out the human population, nor was it to aide any sort of Chaos uprising or insurrection, but rather the Clique sought to prepare the sector for when the Imperium arrived. The weakest would be culled by the horrors inflicted upon them, while what remained would be strengthened by their experiences. But the Janus Clique did not stop there. Via psycho-surgery, long-term genetic geas programmes and other forms of genetic engineering, the Clique created future agents within the offspring of what they believed would become future nobles, governors, military leaders – who could be activated whenever needed by the Clique The Imperium Arrives (339.M41) The Janus Clique were aware of the encroaching Imperial Crusade several years before it arrived, and so stepped up their operations to destabilise the sector wherever they could in hopes of making the transition into Imperial control as simple as possible. New batches of sleeper agents were created and programmed, a host of plagues, disasters and conflicts were wrought across the sector in the Clique’s attempts to weaken any possible defence against the Imperial invasion. But the presence of Xenos complicated their plans, and in many cases the Clique intervened to help ensure the aliens would not prevent the return of the population to the control of the Imperium. Tainted Meat (400.M41) As the Imperium began to take territory and annex the human enclaves of the Eressa Sector, the Janus Clique put their first major plan into action. Intent on cutting down the size of the ‘weaker’ human populations, the Clique selected a slew of worlds deemed unfit to serve the Emperor and Imperium, mainly due to high rates of mutation. Disguised as loyalist Space Marines, the traitorous Astartes were able to pass onto the agri worlds without issue, and from there began blackmailing or extorting local administrative functionaries, business owners and collective farm managers. Under the guidance of the Alpha Legion, they were forced to introduce a strong cocktail of chemicals into the feed for the grox, as well as their grain and wheat produce. Alongside this, strange chemicals were introduced to the water supplies. Initially, the agri worlds seemed to benefit from the actions of the Alpha Legion, massively increasing their output of food. Despite the chaos of the Imperium's arrival, the acts of the Janus Clique appeared to have prevented the outbreak of famine as their chosen vectors took up the burden that war-torn agri worlds could not meet. The horror of the Alpha Legion's actions only became apparent about a year later. Massive numbers of Imperial citizenry were left completely sterile or impotent, while many Grox were likewise left sterile or impotent. Ideology At the end of the Horus Heresy, the Alpha Legion was wracked by ideological schisms. While some Warbands and Cells embraced Chaos as master or servant, others held firm to the belief that victory for Chaos over the Imperium of Man would ultimately ensure the destruction of the Chaos Gods. For the Janus Clique, their beliefs lie somewhere in the middle. The Janus Clique considers the current Imperium to be riddled with weakness and decadence, and thus a perfect host for the parasitic corruption of Chaos. Despite this, they consider the Imperium not to be beyond saving – though salvation can only come through struggle and hardship. Once the weak and decadent are culled, the body of humanity and its collective ego will be freed from the parasite of the warp and able to master it with ease, as well as the rest of the galaxy. Their belief system is not far from that of Inquisitorial Recongregationism – a factor that has worried the small number of Ordo Hereticus agents aware of the Clique’s existence. Organisation Only smattering of Inquisitorial agents are aware of the existence of the Janus Clique, and fewer still are aware of its organisation. What scattered records and accounts exist claim they number only ten Astartes, a small and fanatic fraternity dedicated to their heretical blend of nihlophilosophy and Recongregationism. Each member (known only by the title of ‘Agent’) is trained to operate autonomously. Every Agent possesses many proxies and contacts, and each works in tandem with one another to ensure their separate chains of command do not overlap or fall into conflict with one another. All of them however fall under the command of their leader, Agent 1; Mithras ‘the master of spies’ – an Alpha Legion officer said to have been part of their Legion since the Horus Heresy. Members Mithras Tùzǐ, The Two Faced Hydra Known by his title and little else, Mithras is whispered to have been a figure high in the officer corps of the Alpha Legion. Mithras is largely known by his title, 'The Two Faced Hydra', in reference to the only known record of him. The name 'Mithras' itself is believed to be an Alpha Legion codename, as several other Alpha Legion Chaos Lords are known to have used the title. As a young officer in the Alpha Legion, Mithras was seeded into the Sons of Horus during the Heresy. He had taken the identity of a Sons of Horus captain and shipmaster, but Mithras appeared to be playing off not only the individual Sons of Horus but his own legion as well. Feeding his own faulty information which resulted in the capture of Alpha Legion agents across the traitor and loyalist forces, he likewise led the Sons of Horus into disastrous ambushes after staggering victories. Eventually, his handlers lost their patience and another agent within the same cell as Mithras ousted him as an infiltrator. By this point in the Heresy, the Sons of Horus and other traitor legions had fully embraced the depravity and corruption of chaos. Dragging him to the bridge of his Strike Cruiser, Mithras was stripped of his armour in front of the entire ships crew and troop complement and tortured. His skin was flayed, bleach was rubbed into his eyes, before his right eye was removed. Finally, as a lesson to any other infiltrators who might attempt to sneak into the Sons of Horus, and to any Alpha Legion agents who might fail the Legion, the man who had ousted him began to carve the infamous Hydra symbol into Mithras chest. But before he could finish the third head of the Hydra, Mithras was able to break free. Despite being unarmed, he killed the man who had ousted him. Mithras was ultimately able to kill every man on the ship who had seen him, before destroying the vessel itself. Mithras is clad in a set of ornate artificer armour, with overlapping plates marked by scales, hydra-symbolism and serpent motifs. He is often accompanied by a Grynix with obsidian fur. Appearance Scattered Inquisitorial documentation records the Janus Clique as lacking a uniform armour scheme. Its Astartes members wear scavenged or stolen power armour; some members are still clad in plate used during the Heresy, while others are dressed in the most modern armour the Imperium can produce. Many wear the colours of loyalist chapters, and others even disguise themselves as better known cells of the Alpha Legion. One item that is universal among the Clique is a ring carved from obsidian, highlighted by a silver engraving of a twin-headed hydra Quote Feel free to add your own! 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